Hero in Violet
by Confiscated Retina
Summary: He's not quite the hero they were hoping for but, with the help of a faun and her friends, he might be just what they need to save the worlds of Avalar. Rated for language, death, and morbid/suggestive humor.
1. Doorway to Glimmer

**A/N:** This all just...appeared on my AlphaSmart over the holidays somehow and...well... I have a personal policy to never post any story that isn't finished, but this... _This_! Every time I realize I'm actually writing it I get the giggles. :D This needed to be shared and I will do my utmost best to get to a conclusion. At present, there are four finished and four roughed out chapters plus some notes for future events. I hope you guys have even a fraction of the fun reading this that I have writing it. :D

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**Hero in Violet**

**1. Doorway to Glimmer**

Snow billows around a small figure standing in shadow on a dark rooftop. A sigh escapes into the cloudy night on a plume of steam. The streets below are quiet, devoid of all activity, let alone any of the criminal sort. The only sounds are the flapping of a cape in the wind and the occasional rumble of a passing vehicle.

"I could really use a vacation," Mysterion says to nobody.

It's the middle of winter and everything is maddeningly quiet. He was hoping for something, anything, to do tonight but there is nothing to assuage his cabin fever. With a noise of dissatisfaction, Mysterion pushes away from the concrete barrier of the roof. He turns toward the door to the stairs and one booted foot hits a patch of ice.

"Shit!" his arms pinwheel as he stumbles backward, hitting his thighs on the roof ledge. "Shit, shit, shit!"

Of course he goes over and the larger part of him that isn't afraid of the inevitable is rolling its metaphorical eyes. In a miraculous display of acrobatics, Mysterion manages to roll off an awning, grab a streetlamp pole, and land on his stinging feet in the street. Stunned, he grins to himself, wishing someone had been around to see that. His taut muscles are beginning to relax enough for him to move when a blaring horn sounds from behind.

"Fuck," Mysterion sighs, resigned.

He manages to curl in on himself, hands over his head, as brakes shriek behind him. The truck jackknifes and he can hear its immense mass barreling toward him. Mysterion braces for the impact. Something slams against metal and there's a whoosh as the gate on the back of the eighteen-wheeler's trailer flies open. Mysterion squeezes his eyes shut.

An engine rumbles over his head and he can smell burning rubber. Cracking one blue eye open, Mysterion sees giant tires silhouetted by the streetlights. Despite all odds, he's somehow alive, crouched under the truck.

"Ha!" a grin spreads across his face as he crawls out from under the back tires.

He's still grinning when a massive stack of premade doors shifts, falling on him with a thunderous roar from the truck's open back.

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"Hurry, Professor," Elora dances from one hoof to the other, nervously looking over her shoulder and wringing her hands.

"Almost got it," the mole-like Professor mutters. "Just a few more adjustments to these orbs..."

The Glimmer sky is bright overhead, sunlight reflecting off gems littering the grassy hills. This beautiful day contrasts sharply with the anxious mood of the three conspirators. It's only been a few hours since Ripto's unintentional arrival in Avalar but his presence is already corrupting the worlds in subtle ways. Hunter stands watching the entrance to the alcove where they are building a secret portal to another world, his tail lashing and shoulders tense as he eyes another troupe of mischievous blue lizards in the distance.

"Got it!" the Professor crows.

Elora bounces on her hooves with anticipation. Her red fur bristles as the portal powers on to reveal the sky of another world, cloudy and dark. She bites her lower lip with worry. If this doesn't work...

"I think it's working," the Professor's voice is hopeful. "Yes, yes, that's it! I've got something!"

Hunter turns from his vigil to watch the portal, just in case another enemy comes through instead of the help they are in desperate need of.

Something tumbles out of the portal, vivid shades of purple rolling through the grass. He lands on his feet, eyes warily darting over the alien landscape. They come to rest on the strange trio, picking out the faun, the cheetah, and the mole-ish Professor one by one.

"Is that a dragon?" Hunter whispers loudly to Elora.

Her green eyes lock with the newcomer's, uncertain. "Um..."

"What the hell?" Mysterion growls, as confused as the three standing in front of him.


	2. Ripto

**2. Ripto**

"Please, uh, whatever you are," Elora steps forward, face earnest and worried. "We need your help."

"Tell me," blue eyes lock with green.

"We," she gestures at her two compatriots, "were testing a new portal last night and something sinister came through. He's a short little monster named Ripto with two henchmen and I think he means to live up to his threat of taking over Avalar!"

Before Mysterion can do more than open his mouth to ask a question (of which he has many), a fireball slams into the portal. The sky over South Park ripples and disolves an instant before the arch explodes. The Professor yelps and hastily covers his head as he tumbles to earth. Hunter staggers back, tripping and falling on his tail. Elora remains standing, a look of guilty fright on her almost human face. Mysterion follows the direction of her gaze to a stumpy orange creature barely taller than himself and standing on the shoulders of a behemouth green dinosaur-like beast.

"Well, well, well," Ripto sneers. "What have we...what is _that_?"

"Are you Ripto?" growls Mysterion.

"Yes," yellow eyes narrow dangerously. "Who..._what_ are you?"

"The guy who's about to kick your ass."

With no further hesitation, Mysterion springs forward, cape billowing behind him. Ripto raises his staff but is tackled to the ground. The magical scepter flips in the air a few times before being swallowed by the massive green creature. Ripto has no time to notice as a gloved fist slams into his face. He and Mysterion roll in the grass, snarling and striking at one another.

"Crush!" Ripto manages to howl. "Get this lunatic beast off of me!"

A massive bipedal creature with stubby wings sticking out of his blue back swings the club in his over large hand. The strike flutters Ripto's outlandish cape and sends Mysterion flying into a nearby rock face with an audible shattering of bones. Elora lets out a scream while Hunter claps his paws to his mouth.

"This isn't over," Ripto staggers to his feet, blood oozing down his chin. He spits a tooth into the grass. "Where's my scepter?"

The green behemoth gives him a guilty look and belches a few shimmering sparks from his fanged mouth.

"Gulp, you idiot," his orange commander snarls, climbing back to his place on the beast's shoulders. He turns a baleful look on the three conspirators. "I'll deal with all of you later."

As Crush and Gulp's footsteps fade into the distance, a cold dread settles over the three. Tears welling in her eyes, Elora runs to Mysterion's side. He sits crumpled against the rocks, dark stains spreading over the purple and green of his costume. A trickle of red oozes from one nostril.

"Oh no," Elora whispers, reaching a hand out to touch their almost-hero. "I'm so sorry. It wasn't supposed to be like this."

One bloodshot eye opens weakly.

"S'okay," blood bubbles between cracked teeth. "Be back...in a minute..."

She can feel his last breath on her wet cheeks and Elora bows her head over the fallen hero. The Professor and Hunter stand in horrified silence. The only sound is a faun quietly weeping.

Wings buzz overhead and a tiny fairy dressed in yellow flutters by Elora's drooping ear, golden sparks dancing in her wake. Peering in the direction from which she has come, Hunter gasps.

"Oh my," the Professor murmurs.

"Elora! Elora!" the fairy tugs at a strand of bright red hair.

"Yes, Zoe?" the faun sniffles.

She manages to drag her eyes away from Mysterion's body to follow the direction of Zoe's shaking hand. Hurrying over the horizon is a figure in purple, cape billowing behind him, a green question mark bobing on its spring over his head. She gasps and turns to look at Mysterion's remains...only to see that they aren't there.

"Hey, where did you go?" Hunter asks as their hero comes to a panting stop.

Mysterion gives him a tired, disappointed look.

"He...he was dead!" Elora's voice shakes as much as her hands and blue eyes turn to look at her sharply.

"Well, that can't be," says the Professor. "I'm sure we would remember something like that."

"But, I saw..." the faun's mouth opens and closes as words fail her.

"It's been a long day," Zoe lays a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder. "I'm sure you just need some sleep. We all do."

"That's a marvelous suggestion," the Professor quips. "I'm sure Ripto can't do much after the beating he's just had. Let's find some place where we can get some rest, shall we?"

Reluctantly, Elora trails behind her friends, looking over her shoulder at matted grass and a dark stain on the rocks above it.

With one eye on his surroundings, Mysterion watches the faun, thinking.


	3. A Magical Guide

A/N: Whoops. I've meant to post this chapter and the fourth one for weeks. Hope it's been worth the wait. :)

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**3. A Magical Guide**

"Um so...about back there..." the faun's white-tipped tail flips in the direction of the alcove.

Mysterion has fallen into step with Elora behind Hunter, Zoe, and the Professor. He looks up sharply at her when she speaks.

"You saw me die," his voice is cold, "and you remember. No one remembers." She flinches at the bitterness in his words. "How?"

"I don't know," she admits. "Avalar is a strange place in itself and I'm not even from these worlds."

He seems frustrated for a moment, then asks, "Okay. How much of what did I take?"

Her ears flick. "Excuse me?"

"If I wake up in the ER they're going to want to know what I smoked, ate, whatever, and how much. I kind of want to know, too, because this must be some good shit."

"I..." Elora's mouth opens and closes. "I'm sorry, but I really don't understand what you're trying to ask me."

"Let me put it another way, then: how did I get here?"

The faun looks faintly amused. "Through a portal, how else?"

"A portal?"

"Of course. We're in Glimmer right now, but Avalar is a group of multiple dimensions connected by portals." His expression is completely lost. "Here, maybe this will help."

They stop and Mysterion watches as she clasps her hands in front of her modest cleavage, closing her eyes in concentration. The air seems to shimmer and he can smell new pages as if he has his nose in a book. A flash of light blinds him momentarily. When he can see again, Elora is holding a thick tome in her hands. She holds it out to him.

"It's a magical guide to Avalar," she says proudly. "Hunter and I wrote it."

"Hunter's the cheetah, right?"

"Yeah, that's him."

Mysterion takes the book, his mind caught by the look of mixed pride and sadness on her face, a blush tinting her cheeks. Their fingers brush and he can feel her warmth through his thick work gloves.

"Thanks," he says, flipping through the brightly illustrated pages. Being caught in the throes of what Mysterion is sure is the most vivid drug trip he's ever been on is no excuse for rudeness. "So...we're in a place called Avalar?"

"No, this is Glimmer, which is part of Avalar."

"Huh..."

"Maybe the Professor can help me explain..." she looks up to see that they are alone. "Oops."

Mysterion looks up from the guide. "'Oops'?"

"I think we've been left behind," at his concerned look Elora puts up a hand. "But it's okay! I know how to get back to Summer Forest."

"'Summer Forest'?" he quirks an eyebrow.

"One of Avalar's three homeworlds."

"Lead the way, then," he says with a shrug.

They walk in silence toward a well-lit cave. When he closes the book after having skimmed it, Mysterion jumps as it vanishes in a small flash of light. Elora grins at his reaction.

"It'll come back when you want or need it," she says.

"Shit," he mutters to himself. "I could make a fortune if I knew what I was on right now."

"Do you mean, like...has someone cast a spell on you?" Elora asks.

"Something like that."

"Well, the only person around here who could have done that was Ripto and I don't think he had the time," she leans over and sniffs. "You don't smell like magic, or anything else unusual, if that helps."

Mysterion looks thoughtful. "This is the least amount of tits I've ever seen on a drug trip, and I usually don't take anything when I'm on patrol..." He stops walking and turns to Elora with an earnest expression on his face. "Will you take your top off?"

"What?!" she crosses her arms over her chest and glares. "No!"

"Hmmm... Maybe I'm not hallucinating. Can I try something?"

Elora looks deeply suspicious as Mysterion pulls off one glove. "That depends."

"I just want to touch your tail."

"Oh. Well..." she relaxes a little and sweeps her bushy red tail toward him.

The fur is soft and springy under his fingers. He can feel the tension of bone and muscle underneath the fluff. In one swift motion he pulls her tail just hard enough to make her stagger, her bare arms flying out for balance, and puts a hand on her chest. They're small but pleasantly real under the fabric of her bright green shirt.

"You little creep!" a hoof thuds into his shin and Mysterion quickly lets go, stumbling back.

"Ow! Dammit!" he can feel a lump already growing under the purple spandex above his boot top.

Elora's hands are in tight fists and she looks like she's preparing to kick him again. Mysterion takes a limping step back, both hands up in a placating gesture.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" he says, grinning. "I've been on a lot of crazy trips and that was the only way I could think of to make sure this wasn't another one!" He winces. "The kick was a nice touch, too."

Her red tail lashes furiously behind her but some of the fire is leaving her eyes. "You could have just asked. Dork."

"But you said..."

"I said I wouldn't take my top off."

He rubs his sore leg thoughtfully then smirks. "Well. I'll try to remember that."

They resume their walk at a slower pace, Mysterion limping slightly.

"You said no one remembers," Elora says suddenly.

"What?"

"Earlier. You said no one remembers when you die. Does it happen often?"

"More times than I'd like," he says with a sigh. "I stopped counting at eighty-seven."

She blinks a few times, not looking at him. "Have you ever hallucinated dying on any of your...trips?"

"I think I overdosed once or twice, but...no. Now that you mention it, I guess I haven't."

She punches him in the shoulder hard enough to hurt but there's a smirk on her lips. Rubbing the new sore spot, Mysterion grins, too.


	4. A Bear and a Faun

**A/N:** This one goes out to girlovesmoosey for reminding me that I have written this cracktacular thing and being super fun to PM. :) Here's the Moneybags, as promised. :D Also, a big thanks to everyone who's read, favorited, followed, and reviewed this story. I'm very grateful to all of you. :)

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**4. A Bear and a Faun**

"What the fuck?" Mysterion mutters under his breath, one eyebrow raised.

After the dinosaurs, fairies, lizards, and various other oddities, he is sure he's seen everything. The sight of a richly dressed bear, monocle and all, makes him think he hasn't even begun to see strangeness. Elora looks furious.

"Moneybags," she huffs, "now is not the time!"

"It's never a bad time for an enterprising entrepreneur, my dear," he says, smiling.

A decent-sized chasm stands between them and where ever it is the faun is leading him. Peering down, Mysterion meets the doe-eyed gaze of a bizarre brown monster holding a club. Looking up, he sees a sizable gem hanging from the ceiling and thinks that it might make a decent grapple point from which to swing across. It appears that a bridge should cover the gap but he can't see any sign of it. Zoe flutters anxiously over the small abyss.

"I don't have any gems, you pompous oaf," Elora is saying. "There's a serious problem and we don't have time for your lazy shenanigans!"

"Lazy? Hmph!" the bear turns his nose up at her. "Indeed!"

"There are gems right behind you!" an angry flush is creeping into her cheeks.

Moneybags ignores her.

Mysterion is about to suggest his plan to just swing over the chasm when Elora snatches the bag of gems out of the bear's hand. Its contents rattle, a few glittering jewels falling out as she throws it on the ground. The faun raises one sharp hoof over a shimmering magenta stone.

"Open the bridge, Moneybags," there is steel in her voice.

"You wouldn't," the bear seems pale under his dark brown fur.

In answer, Elora slams her hoof down, a minute crack appearing deep inside the gem.

"Alright, alright!" there is a grinding noise as Moneybags snaps his fingers, a thick stone bridge sliding across the gap.

"Thank you for your cooperation," Elora says with a beaming smile and a kick to the bag, sending precious stones rolling in every direction.

After a moment, Mysterion follows her onto the bridge, watching her fluffy tail sway in time with her hips. She is straight-shouldered, head held high, hooves clicking sharply on the stone. He grins.

"A guy could get to like someone with that kind of attitude," he says as they are walking through the short tunnel on the other side.

She flashes him a smug grin over her shoulder.

Twitchy is an appropriate name for the fidgety Gemcutter who greets them on the other side of the tunnel.

"Elora?" he says, tail swishing and eyes blinking rapidly. "Oh, thank goodness! Pongo said there was some trouble and I was worried and..."

"We're alright, Twitchy," the faun gives him a soothing smile. "Did Hunter and the Professor come by here?"

"Oh, yes! They used the portal back to Summer Forest. Here, let me open it for you."

With a wave of his dark-furred paws, an arch that reflects the pink-hued Glimmer sky rises from the ground. Mysterion watches with a stoney expression; he's starting to grow accustomed to the oddities of this place. Twitchy is giving him a scrutinizing look.

"There's one more thing we need," Elora says. "I think Ripto is headed for the castle. We're going to need as many talismans as we can get if we want to stop him."

"Anything for you, Elora," he says. "But...I'm not sure I should be bringing out the Glimmer talisman around a stranger..."

Mysterion draws a breath to reassure the little rodent but Elora beats him to it.

"He punched Ripto in the face. A lot."

The Gemcutter brightens, ears and tail perking up, an excited grin spreading under his big, wet nose. "Oh! That was this guy? Pongo saw the whole thing and told me about it! Wow!"

Furry paws seize one of Mysterion's gloved hands and shake it vigorously. "Uh, thanks," he says.

As soon as he drops Mysterion's hand, Twitchy claps his paws in front of his chest. As he draws them outward a shimmering object appears in the air between him and Elora. A golden miner's pick axe spins into existence, hovering for a few moments before vanishing.

"Where do I put...?" Mysterion begins.

"In the guidebook," Elora says. "Thanks so much, Twitchy."

"Anything to help," the Gemcutter says with solemnity. "Good luck. You can count on us Gemcutters to help in any way we can."

"Just keep an eye out for any more of Ripto's mayhem."

Twitchy waves as they step into the portal. Mysterion watches Glimmer fade beneath his feet, magic lifting him into the pastel sky. Looking up, he sees Elora floating above him, hair drifting around her serene face. It's the most peaceful he's seen her look thus far.

They touch down with the sound of hooves and boots scuffing over cobbled stones. Gravity settles over him like a cloak as Mysterion looks at a world of green trees and blue sky. Elegant stonework seems built around and for the summery forest, a babbling stream flowing through green grass. Gems sparkle here and there. It's one of the most beautiful, peaceful places he has ever been.

"I didn't really get to properly introduce myself," Elora says, holding out her hand. "I'm Elora and I'm..."

"A faun, I know," Mysterion shakes her hand solemnly.

"You do?"

"Yeah. Fauns are my favorite mythical creatures."

She lets go of his hand, looking a little sullen. "I'm not a myth."

He lets his eyes briefly roam over her. "Clearly. But there aren't any fauns where I'm from."

"Oh."

"Er, it's Mysterion, by the way," he says after a strained pause.

"That's an interesting name," she sounds genuine.

"It's not my real name."

"Really?" her ears lift, curiosity in her tone. "Why not?"

"Superheroes always need a secret identity."

"Huh. Do you ever tell anyone your real name?"

"Sometimes."

They stand in silence for a few moments, wind rustling through the trees.

"Well," Elora gestures vaguely at the idylic scenery, "this is one of the Avalar homeworlds, Summer Forest. I guess we should see if we can't find out where Ripto and his flunkies have gone."

"Sounds like a good idea. So what's a homeworld? It sounds like something out of a video game."

She explains as they walk through the trees.


End file.
